THE KEYS OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.

Southland Times, Issue 1617, 9 August 1872, Page 3

THE KEYS OF THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN.

Sib, — A key is used in scripture as a symbol of the power of reTealing or interpreting secret things. As a key is to a lock, so is power to things intellectual, moral, and political. The scriptures say of Messiah, " the key shall be upon his shoulder" (Isaiah xxii. 22), i.e., " the gorernment shall be possessed by him." And again, " I have," says Jesus the Christ, " the keys of death and of Modes," i.e., of the unseen (grave) and of death : which is to say that Jesus " the Lord, the Spirit" hath the power to open the graves of the dead, and to restore them to life (Rev. i. 18.) Under the law of Moses, it was divinely appointed that " the priest's lipa should keep knowledge, and Israel should seek the law at his mouth ; for he was the messenger of the Lord of Hosts" (Malachi ii. 7). The priests, however, became bo corrupt and ignorant that Israel sought in vain for knowledge at their lips, and therefore perished for lack of it." "Ye are," says the Lord, " departed out of the way ye priests : ye haTe caused many to stumble at the law : ye have corrupted the covenant of Levi, saith the Lord of Hosts" (Malachi ii. 8.) This was precisely the state of things when the Truth Incarnate made his appearance in Judea. He denounced them for their corruptions. "Ye hava made," said He, " the commandments of God of none effect by your tradition (Mark vii. 9). " But in vain do ye worship Him teaching for doctrines the commandments of men" (Mark vii. 7). Among these hypocrites were the lawyers, who, feeling the truthfulness of His denunciations, remonstrated against it. But he turned upon them and said, " Wpe unto you, law* er» !" Why ? " Because ye took away the key of knowledge : ye entered not in yourselves, and them that were entering in ye hindered" (Luke xi. 52) . Here the carrying off the key of knowledge is to prevent persons from entering the kingdom of heaven. Hence to enable men to enter in is to restore it. " Woe ! unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites ! because ye shut the kingdom of heaven against all men, and will neither enter yourselves nor permit others who would to enter" (Mat. xziii. 13.) From these premises we observe that the key of knowledge is the power that one possesses of disclosing anything nof generally known j tha; the act of disclosure is in speaking the secret in a known tongue j that to Jake away the key v to

blind the mind by fiction, co that the truth is either corrupted or lost ; that to corrupt the truth is to shut the kingdom of heaven against men : for it is written, " In vain do ye worship Him, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." And lastly, that by the tradition of the Scribes and Pharisees and Lawyers, the kingdom of heaven had been shut in the days of Jesus, " the Messenger of the Covenant." If we ascertain what Jesus meant by giving the k»ys to Peter, and by being with his Apostles to the end of the world, I think we cannot fail to perceive that neither to Popps, Kings, nor Priests did he design them to be transmitted ; nor did He promise to keep such unholy company as theirs to the end of the world (or age) . Scripture is the best interpreter of scripture. To understand therefore what Jesus meant by giving the keys of the kingdom of heaven to Peter, we ought to familiarize ourselves with the events of his subsequent and public life. It is obvious from the context that the giving of the keys to Peter is an expression symbolical of the authority entrusted to him, to remit and retain the sins of men ; for it says, " whatever you shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you shall loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven." The power of authority to remit and retain sins in an appointed way was bestowed on all the Apostles, for Jeaus the Christ | said to them, after his resurrection, "As the i Father hath sent me, so do I send you." After these words He breathed on them and said unto them, " Receive ye the Holy Spirit. Whosoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them ; whosoever ye retain, they are retained " (John xx. 23). Here then they all hud power in common. But in what respect had Peter the power in particular ? A dozen persons may have the exclusive knowledge of certain important matters, and yet one only of these individuals have the right, power, or authority to open the commission — to unlock the door of knowledge with which they are entrusted. Twelve jurymen may be all acquainted with the verdict agreed upon, yet one only, and that the foreman, has the authority to make it known to the court. Hence when Jesus gave Peter the keys in connection with the remitting and retaining of sins, I understand that he constituted him the foreman or speaker of the twelve — that is authorised him to make known in the first instance the way — the way by which Jesus had appointed the sins of men to be remitted and retained. I have often thought how singularly appropriate was the selection of Peter for the speakership of the twelve. He was ever prompt and of ready utterance upon all occasions, but besides this, there were other considerations calculated to make him most eligible for the office. It seems that there had been a contention among the Apostles which of them should be accounted the greatest. And Jesus said to them, " The kings of the Gentiles exercise dominion over them, and they who oppress them are called benefactors, but ye shall not be so ; but he that is greatest among you let him be as the younger (least), and he that is chief, as he that doth serve" (Luke xxii. 26). "If I, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another's feet." Peter wtts doubtless involved in the contention for preeminence. Jesus was very pointed in His remarks to him on this occasion — " Simon, Simon," said He, " Satan (adversary) has desired to sift thee as wheat" (Luke xxii. 31). He did sift him indeed, for he was made to deny his Master with oathß and curses. He repented and was pardoned. Could Peter after so humiliating a trial have the face to lord it over his fellowapostles P Could he under such circumstances aspire to be " the Prince of the Apostles" — the fcrchbish >p of the bishops, or overseers of the Church in Jerusalem — tbe Pope of Christendom, so called P Had he subsequently contended for the Popedom, might not his brethren have said, What right have you to rule over us ? Did you manifest more love to the Master than we P Did He not say to you, " Get you behind me adversary ! (save the marl) you are an obstacle in my way : for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men" (Mark viii. 33). Did you not with execrations and oaths asstrt that you knew Him not P Did not Paul withstand you (Cephas, a rock) to your face for dissimulation P (Qaktiane ii. 11) In my next communication I shall show the manner in which Peter disposed of the keys committed to his custody. — I am, &c, W. G. Mackay. Tay street, sth August, 1872.

[The discussion on this subject will close with the insertion of the second part of Mr Mackay's letter.— Ed. S.T.]